International plot consultant, author of the Plot Whisperer books for writers and founder of PlotWriMo, I help transform stories. As Secrets of Personal Transformation visionary, I help transform lives.

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21 March 2012

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert is a character-driven memoir and motion picture of the same name.

In this story, the protagonist (I use the term character and protagonist even with a memoirist in order to make the reference less personal and to remind memoir writers to develop their character to show change and transformation) attempts to achieve her goals (outlined below). She also, on a much deeper level, undertakes an intensive spiritual investigation. As a seeker, her focus is on the search for Truth or meaning.

The book is more prose writing than in scene, in that the author spends lots of time describing Italy and India and Bali, the three places where the three segments of the book unfold. In much of the book, the author also discusses her thoughts. Because of the subjects she described ~~ the history of meditation, descriptions of the Ashram, and the like ~~ are fascinating and extremely well-written, and most readers like to learn something new through reading, many will not object to the telling nature of much of the narrative.

When Gilbert does write in scene, the descriptions and discussions have depth and impact. However, the dramatic action, when in evidence, is secondary. Her character emotional development and search for resolution and God over time carries the significance.

A thematic significance statement for Eat Pray Love could be:

A spiritual journey is challenging but, when undertaken with passion, and dedication, can transform a person enough to overcome hurt and love again.

The Beginning (1/4)The Beginning of Eat Pray Love functions in an introductory mode as all good Beginnings do. The protagonist’s dramatic action goals are clearly outlined: 1) to spend one-third of the story in Italy learning the language, 2) one-third on her Guru’s Ashram in India in meditation, and 3) one-third in Indonesia with a medicine man. Her character emotional development goals are clearly implied: 1) undergo intensive self-inquiry, 2) recover from her recent divorce, and 3) find balance and spirituality in her life.

The Beginning of the story takes place in Italy with a goal of learning Italian. This section functions on a sensory level with lots of eating great bread and pastries, drinking wine, and meeting terrific men. Of the three sections, Italy is the least challenging for the author, which is fine because this is where we find out her issues: she has had a spiritual crisis, which ended in a divorce and followed by an unfulfilling relationship.

In the Beginning, and into the Middle of the memoir, the protagonist freely shows her flawed self, which, at times, comes across neurotic enough that if her writing were not so compelling, the reader might not stay with her. However, the more flawed the character, the greater the possibility in the final transformation.

The Middle (1/2)In the Middle third, the protagonist travels to her Guru’s Ashram in India and spends her time there mostly in meditation. When she is in scene in this section, it is often with Richard from Texas who is a hoot and a compassionate mentor.

The more she has to devote to meditation, the more frustrated she becomes, which is an effective means of revealing more and more of the depth of who this person truly is. Take note: Although the project only covers one year in her life and the author has several memories of the past, there are only a couple of instances where she actually goes into a flashback.

The Middle is the territory of the antagonists and the bulk of this character’s antagonism comes from her own mind. She can’t concentrate. She can’t meditate. She can’t let go of the past. She engages in useless longings.

In her search for spirituality, “you revert from what attracts you and swim toward that which is difficult.” The more difficult her journey becomes, the more flawed we see her character. Still, as challenged as she becomes, she never gives up or gives in.

At around the three quarter mark in the story, the crisis hits after she climbs to the top of a tower at the Ashram and asks to be shown everything she needs “to understand about forgiveness and surrender.” Up until this point in the book, we know she has been craving a resolution to her dissolved marriage. She would have loved to have an actual conversation with her ex-husband, but knows that will never happen due to the ugliness of the divorce, which had turned them into “two people who were absolutely incapable of giving each other any release.”

Once she drops into mediation “to my surprise, I did an odd thing. I invited my ex-husband to please join me up here on this rooftop in India…. And he did arrive.” What happens after that, as she finds out what she needs to about herself and her part in the past, is she finds the release she so desperately craves.

The End (1/4)The End is the section where the character now shows whether or not she truly understands her flaw and her part in what is not working in her life.

The Climax occurs at nearly the end of the story when the protagonist commits to helping a woman with a child of her own and two orphans she has taken in. Up until this act, the protagonist has been completely self-centered. She has obsessed about her life and flaws and worries.

At the Climax, we see that the wake-up call that came at the Crisis has ripened into the new personality deeply enough that she is able to extend herself in generosity and help another person. This action is the perfect metaphor to show character transformation. We have a definite sense that the protagonist would not have been capable of doing what she does for this family if she had not experienced every single thing she has undergone previously ~~ the definition of the Climax.

The ResolutionIn the end, the protagonist finds love, and satisfies the thematic significance statement: A spiritual journey is challenging, but with passion, and dedication can transform and overcome hurt enough to love again.

To write a lasting and meaningful story, don the hat of a sleuth. In each rewrite, provide another layer of the thematic significance of your stories. Your readers may never uncover the deliberate care that went into the formation of every detail of your story. They will be left to ponder the meaning you set forth, possibly even be changed at depth by your story’s theme. The effort is worthy.

To familiarize yourself with the Universal Story and the basic plot terms in the above blog post:

19 March 2012

From my own personal writing experience and from all the writers I've worked with, I've come to believe that writer's block is more aptly described as a writer who does not know her story well enough.

Rather than succumb to the feeling of blockage and to learn more about your story, writers spend time outlining and/or pre-plotting, tracking scenes and/or creating a plot planner. Often, such strategies help to stimulate ideas and the writing begins flowing again.

Another strategy is research. Whatever time period your novel, memoir, screenplay covers, every writer benefits from researching for just the right details and exploring a broader range of what was happening during that time period historically, politically and with fashion and trends and fads. Often this sort of research stimulates ideas for scenes and the writer finds herself writing again.

Caution for all strategies -- use them until you are inspired to write and then give up the strategy to write. Employ the same strategy again when your energy flags and you feel "blocked." Plotting and tracking and researching are secondary to writing.

Use any of the above strategies or any you have found helpful to roll the boulders out of your way and you'll find yourself achieving your long term goal of finishing your story.

To familiarize yourself with the Universal Story and the basic plot terms in the above blog post:

14 March 2012

She's brash about her character's violence and flippant about the character's flippant coping strategies. At moments, I sense the writer is acting the character.

To convey the truth about a character often takes stepping into the protagonist's shoes, be they flip flops, stilettos or boots to get to know her inside and out well enough to convey her truth. Often that takes exploring the dark side of ourselves.

By the 3rd draft, a writer slips on her own shoes and plots a point to the violence by revealing the truth about the character's coping strategies in scene through cause and effect. A powerful secondary character feels sympathy for the protagonist. He helps the reader, too, to feel sympathy rather than repulsion for her. The character may talk about killing everyone flippantly as a coping mechanism. Who she is is uniquely her. Her feeling are universal. Arrange the scenes to show the true cost to the character herself as she moves from denial to acceptance.

She enters the end, fully conscious of who she is and with a plan to get her where she thinks she has to go.

To familiarize yourself with the Universal Story and the basic plot terms in the above blog post:

09 March 2012

Don't worry about being brilliant for now. Stay in the moment of writing the scene. Revel in the partnership with the muse. Writers often complain about how lonely writing is. You're never alone. You're being held up and supported. Let it come.

Create a writing goal. Make it specific and achievable. Write it in the present tense as if it has already happened.

How many pages today to achieve your writing goal?

To attain your goal, surround yourself with writers who are actively striving toward their goals.

• Mark on the calendar the day you plan to finish this draft of your story.

• Assess what you have accomplished thus far in your story and determine the total number of pages you need to finish (or start) in order to reach the end. Multiple by 250 for the total number of words necessary to tell your story (250 wordsper page). Divide that by the number of writing days between your goal date and today.

• Work your way backward on the calendar to determine how many words you need to write every writing day and approximately how much time you need to allocate to each session. You may find that to accomplish your goal you have to wake an hour earlier or stay up an hour later than you currently do. You might have to limit commitments and daily-life obligations in order to put yourself and your writing first.

• Schedule your writing days and times in pen on your calendar.

Dreams never leave. They hound, haunt, whisper, and beckon you nearer to that which you most fear. It is easy to quit. To reach that which you long for most, the treasure you seek, you first must write the story...

To familiarize yourself with the Universal Story and the basic plot terms in the above blog post:

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How Do I Plot a Novel, Memoir, Screenplay?

Plot Whisperer

Plot Whisperer offers plot tips for writers and bloggers eager to create compelling novels, screenplays, memoirs and blog posts with the reader in mind. All writers struggle with what to put in and what to leave out of their works in progress, how to hold a reader's attention and earn their loyalty, and how to create depth and meaning in their writing for the greatest good.

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"The project you helped me with, Talhotblond, aired on MSNBC and was purchased by a major studio for distribution. I walked away from your seminar not only more confident, and with a great roadmap, but with a burst of creativity that I haven't felt in a long time. Martha Alderson's advice really is like a secret weapon." Barbara Schroeder, writer/director of Talhotblond

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"Martha's gentle questions about motivations and theme led me deeper into my story. Looking for clues in the characters led to intersections with other characters, plot complications and best of all, conflict. Martha's keen insights about the structure of plot helped me better understand the story I was telling and gave the tools I needed to write it, in a new and exciting way." Terri Thayer, author of Wild Goose Chase and Stamped Out

"I learned so much it is like someone opened my brain and poured in a whole new way to write. My consultation with you was invaluable. It was not only what you taught me about plot: your encouragement and enthusiasm gave me confidence. You are a genuine and generous human being, and that is the real gift." Mary Cronk Farrel, author of Fire in the Hole and Daughters of the Dust

Martha is as knowledgeable and passionate about storytelling and "plotting" plot as anyone I have ever met. Her books, templates and workshops break it down and get the light bulbs going! A writer at any level will learn something." Jennifer Solow, author of The Booster

"Taking your class several years ago was integral in improving my craft as a writer and I want to make sure you know that this has been an important part of the success I've finally attained. My agent got me a two-book deal with St. Martin's Press! It's so exciting as it's hard to believe this is finally happening." Wendy Tokunaga, author of Midori by Moonlight & Love in Translation

"Martha Alderson, the 'Plotting Queen' introduced me to the front story/back story concept while I was weaving LOVE MADE OF HEART. This extraordinary teacher came through again, with her book! Just in time for me to finish weaving another novel!" Teresa LeYung Ryan , author and community member who encourages everyone to step into their dreams.

"Hey, regarding your book - someone sent me a copy of Chris Baty's (the creator of NaNoWritMo) book NO PLOT, NO PROBLEM. It's merely musings compared to your Bible. It would be nice, though, since 90,000 people signed up for NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) this year, if your book had a tie-in somehow, like maybe on Amazon's 'If you like this book, then you'll LOVE Blockbuster Plots'. Just a thought, Martha!" Mary Eastham, author of The Shadow of a Dog I Can't Forget

"I cannot stress how Martha's emphasis on the external aspect of plot drove home to me the inherent necessity for a clear plot if the story is not only to hang together and make sense, but have meaning, too." Anjuelle Floyd, author of Keeper of Secrets

"It would save a lot of people a lot of time if they did this from the start. The Plot Planner is a good tool for taking something that is huge and unwieldy (a novel) and making it something that can be understood at a glance." Jim Averbeck, author of In a Blue Room

This book will change the way you approach writing! Martha Alderson's Scene Trackerand Plot Planner tools have helped hundreds of workshop and conference attendees hone their skills, and now you can learn how to take the fear out of plotting even if you can't attend one of her workshops. If you only buy one writing book this year, buy Blockbuster Plots! Melanie Rigney, former Writers Digest magazine editor

"How is that fabulous Block Buster Plot program going? If I get the chance to do another book, you will see me at the front of your class. Without your help plotting my book, Taking Aim at the President, I would not be published today." Geri Spieler, author of Taking Aim at the President

Writing's not easy. One of the hardest things to do well is write great plots. And because reading superbly plotted books isn't always enough to boost one's skills, Los Gatos author Martha Alderson offers a slew of ways to get your plot-lines flowing again. In addition to being the author of "Blockbuster Plots: Pure & Simple" Alderson also offers one-on-one plot consultations. You can contact her -- and keep up on local literary events, meetings, conferences, contests and retreats -- at her Web site. Santa Cruz Sentinel

Don't have problems plotting? Think a book on characterization, theme, editing or synopsis might help your writing more? Do yourself a favor and don't dismiss Blockbuster Plots: Pure & Simple on the merits of title alone.

True--the majority of the book focuses on plot, how to go about discovering the one hiding in your story and strengthening crucial details to help it become, well, the blockbuster plot you envision. But throughout the book, Alderson provides more than plotting activities--she also gives lots of insightful writing advice that help you think of ways to improve your story in different, dynamic ways.

If plots aren't your cup of tea, or maybe if they are but you're willing to look at another interpretation of how to get more mileage from them for your story, Blockbuster Plots is an excellent place to start. BOOK REVIEW by Beth Morrow

Confused about the basics of building a plot in a story? Martha Alderson's focus on how to produce a superior one applies to novels, memoirs and nonfiction alike, using scenes by contemporary writers from Twain to London to show how to create logical and substantial plots. Visual representation of scenes is the focus of a step-by-step workbook packed with tips on everything from character development and depth of story line to action and theme clarification. Any writer seeking to produce not just acceptable but superior works must have this guide. Midwest Book Review